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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26855494">could be wolves</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/concertconfetti/pseuds/concertconfetti'>concertconfetti</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Witchertober 2020 [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Witcher (TV), Wiedźmin | The Witcher (Video Game), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Comfort, Gen, Pack Family, Platonic Cuddling, Protective Parental Figure, Witcher Training (The Witcher), Witchertober (The Witcher), young Witchers</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 17:14:41</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>730</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26855494</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/concertconfetti/pseuds/concertconfetti</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Vesemir told Eskel he’d find the Cat leading hunting exercises in the woods farther down the valley. Yet, here he was, in the middle of the forest, and no Cat Witcher. No Pups, either. It wasn’t unusual for trainers to run exercises like this; what Eskel didn’t get was why a <i>Cat Witcher</i> was running them. Vesemir just told him to go find “the Cat and his Pups” the second he arrived at the keep.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Witchertober 2020 [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1952140</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>could be wolves</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Once again, this takes place in my Oops All Witchers universe. This was written for Witchertober Day 3 - Woods.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Vesemir told Eskel he’d find the Cat leading hunting exercises in the woods farther down the valley. Yet, here he was, in the middle of the forest, and no Cat Witcher. No Pups, either, which was more concerning at the moment. They’d been here - four Pups about to set out on the Path this upcoming spring (their footprints were still noticeable in places) and an older witcher (they’d stepped intentionally, leaving enough of a trail for the younger ones to follow). It wasn’t unusual for trainers to run exercises like this; what Eskel didn’t get was why a <i>Cat Witcher</i> was running them. Vesemir just told him to go find “the Cat and his Pups” the second he arrived at the keep. </p><p>So, Eskel followed. The path was winding - each of the Pups broke off from one another quickly, and the Cat was clearly trying to imitate a deer… potentially a Leshen, given the frequent changes in gait. Whoever they were, they were headed to the Pond, loping steps woven between trees, the scent of sage and verbena twisting in the familiar scent of leaf litter and impending snow. Eskel’s anxiety grew the closer he got to the pond - Geralt told him he’d spotted a chult there last winter, and new witchers, even fours of them, weren’t equipped to face a chult that evaded the witchers in the valley for years. </p><p>Thankfully, the witcher’s path took a sharp turn to the north, towards a little known glen created by the ruins of one of the keep’s old watchtowers. Trees were rounded on one side by a crumbling stone wall that was slowly sinking into the ground, grown through with vines. Eskel broke the treeline and met eyes with five witchers. The Pups scrambled to their feet from where they were piled on top of their trainer. </p><p>"Ah, Eskel, I presume?" The Cat Witcher said with a lopsided grin that lit up his tawny face. "Os told me you might be back soon. Come to make sure I'm not corrupting your Pups?"</p><p>Eskel recognizes this group - the largest to survive the trials. They were, as a result, incredibly close. "Vesemir requested I come fetch you," he said with a shrug. Os, the smallest of the bunch, lit up.</p><p>"Amma, we need to take deer back," he said. The Cat rolled his eyes before heaving himself off the ground.</p><p>"Well then, take the haul back to the keep," he said sternly. The Pups - led by Rafe, a lanky young man with short-cropped red hair (the same color as Geralt's, when he was younger) - scrambled to grab a set of drained carcasses hanging to their left. "Don't keep Uncle Vesemir waiting!" Their trainer yelled after them as they sprinted off in pairs back to the keep. (Os with Lydika, Rafe with Beorn - coordinated and careful with their hunting gear, near silent as they left.)</p><p>The trainer sighed and pulled his wavy auburn locks away from his face - Eskel found himself staring until the Cat's copper-green eyes met his.</p><p>"Name's Ashwood," he said, grinning again. "Lamb's told me a lot about you, and, it seems, Lydika really looks up to you."</p><p>"They seem pretty fond of you," Eskel mused. He gestured back toward the keep; Ashwood gladly took the lead.</p><p>"Yes, well, it seems they latch on to anyone willing to show them even an ounce of affection," Ashwood said, his expression unreadable. </p><p>"There's no affection on the Path," Eskel grumbled.</p><p>"All the more reason to care for them now," Ashwood muttered, his voice low. "They're, what? Twenty? They have their whole, long lives left for suffering. Let them have a fucking home, yeah?" Ashwood's expression was sharp, full of teeth. Not what Eskel expected from a School of assassins. He could see why Lambert liked Ashwood - he clearly gave a damn. Like Vesemir, though with softer edges. </p><p>Eskel hummed and didn't argue. Later, when they arrived back at Kaer Morhen and Vesemir assigned Ashwood kitchen duty, Eskel found his packmates and the rest of the visiting Cats piled on top of each other in front of the fireplace in their shared room. Geralt, in particular, looked at peace in a way Eskel hadn't seen since they were kids.</p><p>Perhaps Ashwood had a point - maybe they deserved a little affection, a bit of home in the wilderness to protect them from the suffering outside.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>title from Wide Blue Yonder by The Amazing Devil</p></blockquote></div></div>
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